Taught by Larry Kernagis using the Wernick Method*

Big Bear Lake, CA at the Vintage Lakeside Inn

41076 Big Bear Boulevard, Big Bear Lake, CA 92315

May 14-16, 2021

Friday 6-9:30pm; Saturday 9am-5pm; Sunday 9am-2pm

Tuition: $250

Includes Saturday breakfast & lunch; $25 discount for Larry’s returning students!

Reserve your room as soon as you register for the camp by calling 909-866-4978 for special camp discount.

We welcome you to register and promptly receive 18 pages of useful student materials, with access to video playlist of 116 jam favorites and great ways to work on jam skills!
If dates of this class change, we will promptly update this page and notify all registrants to switch their registration if the new dates work for them. If they don’t work a full refund will be given.
Deposits fully refundable on request until 7 days pre-class — a change from our usual policy.
Watch our class listing, always updated, and go here to be notified of future classes.

All Wernick Method classes/camps will be conducted either outdoors or in very well-ventilated indoor spaces.
Safe 6′ distancing at all times
Temperature screening of all participants upon arrival, followed by all washing hands
Prior disinfecting of common surfaces (doorknobs, bathroom fixtures, etc.)
Student materials (all paper) will not touched, except by just-washed hands, for at least 24 hours before distribution.
Anything handed from one participant to another (such as a borrowed tuner or capo) will be disinfected before transfer.
With these measures taken, we expect that all can relax and enjoy the class!

Basses and banjos are both full, so please contact Gilbert at closetpickers@gmail.com to get on the waitlist.

Camp Flyer
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50% of your deposit refundable on request if you cancel more than one month in advance.

This camp is SOLD OUT! However, there may be a few spaces opening up soon, so please contact Gilbert Nelson at closetpickers@gmail.com to get on the waitlist.

Larry Kernagis was raised during the folk revival era of the 60s, cutting his chops on Flatt & Scruggs and the Kingston Trio. Eventually, he became a banjo instructor at the famed Old Town School of Folk Music in Chicago. Larry has led Bluegrass jams at festivals across the country for the past 30 years. He now employs his banjo, guitar and vocal skills entertaining with “greengrass” Celtic group Def Leprechaun.

Email Larry

Larry’s students say:

“Larry was an excellent instructor. Patient and kind, he brought the music to life and gave me the tools to do the same.”

“Larry encouraged us to try and get beyond our fears and try different things. He is very patient.”

“When I was young I was a classically trained violinist, but Larry taught me to play music with the other half of my brain…It’s been a great experience.”

“I really feel like I improved and am now able to jam with almost anyone.”

* Wernick Method Classes teach real bluegrass jamming!

All bluegrass instruments welcome
No jamming experience necessary
You will be jamming the first class!
Friendly, encouraging, knowledgeable teaching.
Gentle tempos! Mistakes expected!
Music reading not needed or used
Singing not required, but encouraged and taught.
Easy 2- and 3-chord songs, slow speeds.
Soloing not required! “Faking” solos taught.
Understanding, low-pressure, time-tested teaching

Intermediates welcome, and given added challenges
Hands-on learning in large and small groups
Learn many bluegrass standards
Full ground rules and etiquette of typical jams
How to lead songs and how to follow new songs
How to find melodies, fake solos, sing harmony
Ear skills taught and emphasized, as in real bluegrass
Group and individualized instruction on backup skills

Do you qualify? It’s easier than you may think!

If you play guitar, mandolin, banjo, fiddle, bass, or dobro… you can be part of a bluegrass jam.

Only requirements:

You must be able to tune your instrument (electronic tuning devices welcome) and
change smoothly between G, C, D, and A. (Fiddles and basses need to know which notes work with which chords)

For more info or to send payment in the mail, email office@letspick.org.

Click any photo to enlarge.

Bluegrass Jam Camp

Taught by Larry Kernagis using the Wernick Method*